Stranger Things Chapter One: The Vanishing of Will Byers opens with a frantic scientist running down the halls of Hawkins Lab on November 6th, 1983 before being snatched by an off-screen monster. The episode introduces us to the main cast of the show:
The nerds
Mike Wheeler, Will Byers, Dustin Henderson, and Lucas Sinclair are middle school, DnD loving nerds. We meet them in Mike’s basement near the end of a 10-hour campaign.
The teens
Nancy Wheeler and Jonathon Byers are Mike and Will’s older siblings. Steve Harrington is Nancy’s boyfriend.
The adults
Joyce Byers is Will and Jonathon’s mother. Jim Hopper is the chief of police.
The Hawkins Lab crew
Dr. Brenner is the head of a top secret program at Hawkins Lab involving a mysterious young girl called Eleven. The events of the series revolve around these two.
We also meet several secondary characters, including Nancy’s friend Barb, Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler, Hopper’s co-workers, the Middle School science teacher and various other students and residents of the town.
The plot
After leaving the DnD game at Mike’s house, Will Byers encounters a mysterious creature on the ride home, before vanishing from his home. His frantic mother files a missing person’s report, kicking off an investigation by Hopper.
In the meantime, we get some teenagary stuff involving Nancy sneaking around with Steve. We also get a bit of backstory on Hopper, who we learn lost his young child a few years ago and get a view of a gross-looking hole in the wall in Hawkins Lab.
While out looking for their missing friend, the boys encounter a mysterious girl with a shaved head, who had previously turned up at a local restaurant, before being chased out into the rain by Dr. Brenner and his crew. The episode ends with Will’s fate still up in the air and the boys staring at a very wet Eleven. Check out our full recap if you’d like all the gory details.
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